Wednesday, 10 March 2010

UP IN THE AIR - The Thickness of Air

"Up in the Air" by director Jaison Reitman is a light movie with a not so light subtext to it.While it pleases most with an easy scheme and big star George Clooney it also winks at all others with its unexpected non-happy-ending-like final twist. But if we take all plot bends out and we stick to some of the dialogues and a fantastic title sequence we get to go home with a big satisfied smile on our faces.

Just like its almost omonimous "Up" by Pete Docter, airthin made movies carry the substance of dreams and lightness, the humour of the uplifting and the weight-free feeling of the "everything is possible".Nevermind that George "Mr. Bingham" does not get what he wants. What matters is that he shows the guts to try. Just like it does not matter that things are not exactly as they appear, what counts is what we get from them while we have the chance to experience them.

"Up in the air" starts by showing off the images of beautiful U.S. skylines all over the country. A superb vision for all map freaks like me. A challenge for world connoisseurs to recognise even the tiniest and less talked about Omaha (Nebraska) or the domestic flight wings of modern american airports like the one in St. Louis. Following the notes and rythm of "This land is you Land" by Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings the images of this opening sequence run before our eyes along with the beat and they interlace hypnotising visions of clouds and landscapes as only seen from the skyes. A good start to put you in the right mood to swallow the next two hours of the film with the best intentions.

Then follows actress Vera Farmiga's speech to a younger and cynical-but-romantic Anna Kendrick (all interpreters in the film were Oscar nominated) about how taste changes, at an older age, when it comes to men. That's when the movie brings in some poetry. Which collects extra value once we get towards the end of the film and we discover who this lovely mature lady really is and what she really is on about. But I won't spoil it for the ones who have not seen this light but interesting feature on how everything is as thin as air, and how we'd better savour it before it goes.